The celebrations continue at the sanctuary!
A lot of people have helped make all of the fun happen – including those who gave through our Holiday Gift Store.
Debbie put together a holiday recap of the festivities so far. Watch below. The chimpanzees thank you!
It’s still amazing for the humans to see the chimpanzees on the two-acre hill, so we’re often silent too as we watch…
For the big Christmas celebration yesterday, Diana, Elizabeth, and Seana put out some tangerines on Young’s Hill in addition to the ones strung on the Christmas tree. However I guess the chimps were too excited about the big party inside that they didn’t really go out and forage for the tangerines yesterday. So today, they were still hanging out there, frozen for sure. I decided to leave them because I know how excited the chimps get about frozen fruit. Turns out that Jamie was pretty much the only one willing to brave the cold for any length of time, so she ended up with lots frozen tangerines to herself!
Foxie quickly came out and grabbed one tangerine while Jamie was working on some by the bamboo:
Jamie decided to eat her collection in the warmth of the greenhouse.
Yes, I believe that is a Dora the Explorer doll that Foxie is showing around Young’s Hill
It’s been an unusually mild winter so far. It’s been pretty cold, but we just haven’t had much snow. It’s been great in a way, because the chimps have been able to spend more time out on the hill (we can’t give them the hill if the snow gets too deep because it will drain the fence voltage). But we did get a little bit of snow last night, and since the chimps love to eat snow so much, I was eager to give them Young’s Hill as soon as possible today before it all melted.
Before we let the chimps out on the hill each day, the lead caregiver does a perimeter check by walking or driving the Gator all the way around to check for any issues with the electric fence. The chimps are very aware of this routine and usually get a little excited when we turn on the walkie-talkies and head out for our hike around the hill. Each morning, as I pass the east side of the building, I look into the picture windows to see what’s happening in the playroom. Usually I’ll see Negra curled up in her spot with a blanket over her head and maybe Missy and Foxie grooming and such, but today, I saw bouncy feet and an enthusiastic head nod. Annie (bouncy feet) and Missy (head nodding) were so excited to get out there! I looked at Missy and pointed towards the hill (assuming she wouldn’t be able to hear me if I spoke) and she started running towards the door to Young’s Hill.
But when I opened the door, no one went out. There was a long, long pause before finally, Missy, Annie, Foxie, Jody, and then Jamie went out. The sun was out but the wind had picked up and it was COLD! Even still, once they got themselves out there, they hung out there for 45 minutes or so. I was all bundled up in a sweatshirt, jacket, gloves, warm boots, and still freezing, so I can’t even imagine how cold their toes were!
Bipedal Foxie:
Jamie headed up the climbing structure (with Annie behind her)
when she got to the top, she wiped off her feet
and sat down for some snow
Most of Missy’s time on the hill today was above ground:
but she did manage to find a pretty nice ice chunk that she brought in to enjoy in the warm greenhouse
The other day, we put a mostly empty plastic peanut butter jar in with the chimps’ enrichment, which is something we often do when we’ve used the bulk of the peanut butter- the chimps spend hours trying to get the peanut butter remnants off the insides! Foxie was the lucky one who found it first the other day, and she took it on quite the adventure. First, she had it in the playroom. Later, she took it out with her into the greenhouse, and then she and her peanut butter jar went on a hike on Young’s Hill.
She took it with her as she climbed up and down a couple of the climbing structures and then around the perimeter, enjoying the occasional snack. At one point, Jody decided to start a game of chase. She got in front of Foxie and started playfully walking backwards, encouraging Foxie to follow her.
They played for a little while, but then Foxie got distracted and put down the jar. I can’t say if Jody had an ulterior motive for starting the game of chase, but it definitely seemed to work in her favor.
Jody enjoying the peanut butter jar in the greenhouse:
The video below is a montage of pant-hoots, one of the most common vocalizations we hear at the sanctuary.
Negra continued her playful streak this morning, but I think her real intention was to steal Jody’s bed.
There’s so much to celebrate this week, from Save the Chimps final migration to the NIH’s dramatic announcement about the role of chimpanzees in biomedical research.
Here at the sanctuary, the chimps celebrated another sunny winter day by running around their 2-acre enclosure.
As J.B. mentioned in his post the other day, it has been really cold in Cle Elum, but we still haven’t had much snow. We have had significant doses of hoar frost though, which is beautiful! Maybe it’s not as exciting as snow to some, but Jody and Foxie have really been enjoying licking it off of things.
Jody licking hoar frost off of the log bridge:
Foxie was really enjoying licking it off of the climbing structure
And later, Jody joined her
Hoar frost on a tree
Negra Hoodie
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Tickets on sale now for the fourth annual Sippin' for the Seven! New this year - an online art auction open for everyone, no matter your location. Buy tickets and register for the auction (auction items will be posted in March and bidding opens March 24th) on the Biddin' for the Seven auction site. For more information, visit the Sippin' event page.
Chimp Sanctuary NW blog
